


A Little Learning Experience

by A Small World (Datawolf39)



Series: Little Brother [3]
Category: Numb3rs (TV)
Genre: Accident, Charlie is a nervous Little, Charlie's littlespace is based on my own, Communication, Diapers, Don is a good caregiver, Explaining feelings, Fear of Abandonment, Gen, Insecure Charlie, Misunderstandings, POV does change, Plushies, Suddenly coming up from littlespace, Wetting, cartoons
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-29
Updated: 2019-02-02
Packaged: 2019-10-18 15:07:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,683
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17583146
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Datawolf39/pseuds/A%20Small%20World
Summary: Misunderstanding intentions, and Charlie, and Don learning about about Charlie's regressed mindset.





	1. A slight misunderstanding

**Author's Note:**

> So this installment is going to have quite a few chapters. I didn't intend it this way, but I started typing and suddenly I had over 5k of fic. Most of it is written already so it should be up fairly quickly. Also I'll add tags as I add chapters. There is a lot that happens, but I don't want to give everything away.

Charlie woke up with that floaty kind of calmness that he had experienced the last time. He was really happy about that, since he had been a little afraid that it would be like a addictive drug, where the first time is amazing, and each time after that is spent trying to feel like the first time. He took a deep breath, just relishing the calmness around him, and then the guilt hit him.

He had forced Don to be a part of this thing. He had stolen some of Don’s very limited free time, and selfishly used it so that he could be calm. Don must hate him for that now. Now Don would think that he was a baby all the time, and wouldn’t ask for his help ever again, because a baby had no place at a crime scene or helping solve any type of crime.

A glance at the clock told him that Don had certainly left by now. Launching himself off of his bed, he ran downstairs, bypassing everything else, because he needed to prove his worth, as quickly as possible.

What he didn’t see, however, was a note that had fluttered to the floor, in his haste to leave his room.

~

Charlie was avoiding him. It was the only way that they could have managed to miss one another every time for an entire week. The only times that he had seen his brother was when he was explaining how some formula worked, and they couldn’t very well have the talk that they needed to with the whole team, and a host of other people, watching them.

All this amounted to one thing. Charlie was mad at him, and embarrassed at what had happened.

Don really wished that he had been able to stay and have breakfast like they did the last time. Then they would have been able to talk before it was allowed to get this bad. He had left a note though, saying that he was alright, actually he had been thrilled, but didn’t want to risk scaring his brother off, with everything. He had asked that Charlie call him, so that they could talk but that never happened.

“You alright, man?” Colby asked him.

“Yeah, I just got a lot on my mind,” Don answered, getting up from the chair he was sitting in.

“Something to do with your brother?” David commented.

Don sighed. “That obvious?”

“Just to the people who know you,” Colby assured him.

Don sighed again, and ran a hand through his hair. He needed to talk with his brother, and he was going to, no matter how much Charlie wanted to avoid the conversation.

~

As Don walked down the halls of the college, anyone who he passed knew that he was a man on a mission.

He walking into Charlie’s office, and shut the door behind him. One look had Larry excusing himself.

This conversation was truly long overdue, and he could tell by the fact that his brother wouldn’t even meet his eyes.

“You don’t have to talk to me just listen. Dad, and Larry, told me that you’ve been pushing everyone away, and working way too hard. I’m sorry, okay, sorry I went along with everything that night, you can be mad at me, but don’t take it out on everyone else.”

That last bit drew his brother’s gaze. He seemed...confused?

“Mad at _you_?” he questioned. It was the first thing that he had said directly to him in the entire week. “ _You’re_ the one that should be mad at _me_.”

What? Don thought. Then he realized that he needed an answer to that right now so he said it. “What are you talking about?”

“You said it yourself, you’re sorry for going along with it, and you should be. I’m not a kid, I shouldn’t need you to take care of me, but instead of acting my age, and letting you do whatever you were going to do that night, I monopolized your time. I was surprised that you could even bring yourself to ask for my help on this case, and be in the same room with me.”

That was when it clicked. “Charlie, you didn’t happen to see a note in your room did you?”

Charlie shook his head.

Don let out a small laugh of disbelief. “Before I continue that thought, let me ask this, whatever that was, that night, was safe right?”

Charlie nodded, not quite sure what his brother was getting at.

“Good. Second question, and be honest, do you want that to happen again?”

Charlie froze, before allowing a slight nod.

Don walked forward, until he was standing in front of his brother separated only by a desk. “That’s good. Now had you read that note that I was talking about, you would have seen that I was alright with how that evening went, and that I wanted you to call me, but,” he hurried to continue when he saw his brother flinch. “I was lying, I am more than okay with it, I loved it. I liked that you needed me, and that you wanted my attention.”

“Why would I have been mad at you then?”

“What do mean?”

“Earlier, you said that I could be mad at you, what could I have been angry with you over?”

Don swallowed. “For taking advantage to the situation,” Don admitted. “I didn’t ask if everything was alright, didn’t try to investigate the cause, I just went along with it, because it made me happy. That was selfish, and you have every right to be upset about that.”

Charlie stood from the chair he was sitting in, and went around the desk so that he could hug his brother. “We’re both idiots, aren’t we?’

Don smiled. “I won’t tell if you won’t.”

After his Charlie pulled away, he asked, “So you really want for it to happen again?”

“Yeah, I really do. It was nice to only worry about things that could easily be fixed. We need to set some rules though, just so misunderstandings won’t occur as often.”

“I like that idea. First though, I should probably explain exactly what’s happening.”

“I have the time,” Don said as he sat down in a chair.

“Well at first I didn’t understand what had happened at all so…”


	2. Arrival

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Don has time off, and wants Charlie to come stay with him during it.

“Any questions?” Charlie asked his class. He examined the group for any hands, and found one. “Yes, you there in the back,” he said.

“When will we ever use this in real life?”

“Good question, person that I have never met before,” Charlie said.

There was laughter from his other students. Don had popped up in several of his classes, and by this point his students had started to recognize him. Many of them had started to think that it was some kind of bit between the brothers, given that whenever Don appeared, Charlie seemed to come up with some really cool uses for whatever mathematical topic that he had been discussing, and this time was no exception.

Once the students had been dismissed, Don came down the stairs in the auditorium until he was standing next to his brother.

“Guess who has the rest of today, and all of tomorrow off of work?”

Charlie pretended to consider the possibilities. “Colby?”

“Actually you guessed right,” Don said.

“Really?”

Don rolled his eyes. “You know it’s me, why would I come down here to tell you that someone else has off days?”

“Why are you telling me that you have days off anyway?”

Don looked away, as a blush came over him. “I didn’t know if you would- I mean I just… we had that big talk about everything the other day, and I thought since I had some time off we could spend it together.”

“Really? You really want to spend your free time taking care of me?” In anyone else it would be accusatory, but with Charlie it was pure shock.

“I told you I get a lot out of it too. You didn’t believe me?”

“Well I did, but I never thought you would intentional put aside time for it,” Charlie said quietly.

That insecurity was something that was only going to be cured with time, so instead he asked,” Are you free?”

“I have somethings to do, but most of it can be completed online. The one thing that can’t I can get done tonight.”

“So we met at my place around six then?”

Charlie seemed shocked for a second, and then he smiled. “Perfect.”

~

At six a nervous Charlie appeared at his brother’s door, with an overnight bag of clothing. It wasn’t that he was scared, it was just that in a way this would be an entirely different experience. This would be the first time he tried to willingly give into his littlespace, and it would also be his first time away from the security of his home.

He knocked, and Don opened the door. He looked a little nervous, but also happy, and once again he was struck with the fact that his brother wanted this.

“You can put your bag in my room. You are going to be sleeping there after all.”

“Don I can’t take your bed.”

“I’m not letting a kid sleep on the couch.”

Charlie decided not to argue it. Don had a way of getting what he wanted, and it would be easier to slip into his littlespace if he obeyed the rules set out for him.

“I bought you something,” Don said breaking through his thoughts. “I don’t know if you wanted something like this, but…” With that cut off statement he reached into a bag sitting on the sofa. He brought out two things, one was a plush tesseract, colored blue and black, and the other thing was a blue dragon plush.

Charlie became mesmerized at the sight, going so still, that Don had to walk over to him. He handed over both items.

“For me?” Charlie asked softly.

“Of course, buddy,” Don answered.

With shaking hands he took both of them. They were soft, and he couldn’t help rubbing his face against them. “Soft,” he whispered.

“Do you like them?”

Charlie nodded. “Loves them. “Tank you, Donny.”

“Your welcome, Charlie. Why don’t you name them, while I go get you a snack.”

“Kay.”

When Don returned with some apple slices, Charlie was on the couch playing with the dragon.

“Do your dragon have a name?” Don asked, putting the plate on the coffee table.

“Yea, his name is Dray, and dis is Tessa.”

“You named the tesseract?”

Charlie nodded. “It telpa- tellypat- mind thought, and alive. Dray is best friend with Tessa.”

“Of course,” Don said, he would have went along with anything that Charlie said, because of how cute he was.

Again he was hit with the thought that this should be weird. His brother was an adult, but like this, bubbly, happy and innocent, he couldn’t bring himself to care what he should be feeling, because what he was actually feeling was just far more important.


	3. Accident

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Charlie's POV and a little accident

When Charlie laid eyes on the boxy plush tesseract, and the dragon, his worry about being able to slip into littlespace faded, because he was there. He wanted them, but he couldn’t find the ability to move, so he was happy when Donny brought them over.

He knew their names in an instant. The cube was Tessa, and was a girl and thought things to him, and his plush dragon named Dray.

“For me?” Charlie couldn’t help asking, because he needed to be sure. He wanted them so much that it would hurt so much if they weren’t his.

“Of course, buddy,” Don answered.

With shaking hands he took both of them. They were soft, and he couldn’t help rubbing his face against them. “Soft,” he whispered.

“Do you like them?”

Charlie nodded. “Loves them. “Tank you, Donny.”

“Your welcome, Charlie. Why don’t you name them, while I go get you a snack?”

“Kay.”

Charlie went over to the couch, and sat down. Dray wanted to play, and Charlie wanted to be the very best friend to his dragon, and so he played. The couch was a vast plain, and Dray was the ruler. Tessa made sure that the bad people didn’t sneak in.

“Do your dragon have a name?” Don asked, when he got back.

“Yea, his name is Dray, and dis is Tessa.”

“You named the tesseract?”

Charlie nodded. “She telpa- tellypat-  she do mind thoughts, and is alive.” Charlie said, blushing due to his struggle with the word. “Dray is best friend with Tessa and me.”

“Of course,” Donny said agreeably.

Donny made him set Dray, and Tessa down to eat the apples. They were next to him, so he was upset, and the apple was good. “Cans I has something to drink, please?”

“Sure buddy,” Donny said, and when he came back from the kitchen, he had a sippy cup in his hand it had a non-spill straw design. It had blue dragons on it too, that looked kinds like Dray. He managed to pull the straw from its snug housing, and took a sip.

He squealed a little. He loved white grape juice, it was super duper yummy.

“I made a good choice then,” Donny said, like he was not sure that Charlie would like the juice.

Charlie nodded. “Its yummy.”

“I got another surprise for you.”

He frowned. He already had Dray and Tessa. Did he really need more? Ir wasn't right for him to anyway. “I don’t need more surprise.”

“Buddy, its okay. I wanted to buy things for you.”

Charlie tried to consider that. Donny was really smart, and bigger than him, so if he said that it was okay then he had to be right. “Kay,” he said uncertainty

“Let me go get it.” Don stood and went to the case under the tv, he got a dvd, and put it in.

Charlie recognized it instantly. The yellow and white doggy was easy to remember. He also loved the theme song cause it had a lot of big words. Donny sat back beside him, and he leaned on him, and help Dray and Tessa.

~

He didn’t know he had fallen asleep until he woke up. Unlike the previous two times he had woken after regressing, he was still in littlespace. He took a moment to feel it cause it was new. He was safe and warm, there was a plushy throw over him. Donny was still there too. He could hear book pages turning, and he was comfy, so he wondered what had woken him up.

Dray was still in his hand, and Tessa was squished between his body, and the couch, Donny was still there. He was kinda hungry, but not that much really. Plus he was too comfy to move for that right now. He was just about to give up thinking about it, since he was sleepy still, when some pee came out all on its own, and made a wet spot on his pants.

He put his hand down to his privates and squeezed really hard. He was a big boy, and big boys didn’t go pee pee in their pants. He sat up, and just that sent another bit of pee in his pants. Getting up was worse, cause it made it feel like his pee was going to come out.

Some did, and now there was a big stain on his pants. The jeans were light blue, and they didn’t hide what was happening. There was a big patch of dark blue in the middle, and a squiggly one going down his leg.

Every step made the stain get bigger, and each time some came out, it was more and more. He moaned and whined as he started to lose control on the tile, that covered the kitchen and the hallway.

Suddenly a voice was breaking through his panic. Donny! He would make this all better! “Donny, I gotta pee! Pee pee coming out!” he could feel a small puddle at his feet, and wetting his socks with icky cold pee.

Then his wet jeans were being tugged down with his undies, and a bowl thingy was in front of him. He knew he needed to aim, so he made sure he was getting it in the bowl so he wouldn't make more of a mess.

He was breathing hard, cause he was crying. It felt good to let the pee out, but he had gotten it on Donny’s floor and all over his pants. And now Donny would think he was a baby and not a big boy, and he wouldn’t want him no more.

A minute later the final drops fell into the container, and Charlie stood there frozen. He had no idea what to do, and so he did the only thing he could. He broke out into sobs. Choking when he when he ran out of breath, he was scared. “I- I- sowwy,” he managed between cries.

Gentle hands, helped him from his soaked things. Then a cloth cleaned the pee from his legs. Then he was wrapped in a hug. A hand moved through his hair, and another down his back. It was soothing, and soon he found himself calming down.

Words made their way into his awareness, “Stay right here, I’m going to clean up, then you can have a bath. Doesn’t that sound nice?”

Charlie didn’t answer, but it didn’t seem like Donny expected him to. Time seemed to slip away for a moment, an when came back to himself, he was in a warm bath, with a ton of bubbles, and some rubber ducks.

“Are you back with me?” Donny asked.

Charlie nodded, unable to find his voice.

“You had me worried, buddy.”

Charlie looked at him.

“You had gone blank, like you weren’t seeing anything.”

“Sowwy,” he said softly.

“You don’t have to be sorry. I was just worried.”

“Not mad at me?”

“Of course not.”

“But… I had a accident,” he said, as though it was a shameful secret.

“That was more my fault than yours,” Donny said.

“Why?”

“Because I should have asked you if you needed to go before you took your nap.”

At that statement, Charlie’s mind started to fight his littlespace. He regressed sure, but that didn’t mean that he needed to lose control of his bladder. On the other hand though, he was in a state of mind where he was thinking differently, he truly had been unaware that he needed to pee until that first spurt unleashed itself into his clothing.

“You’re really not mad?” he asked.

Don seemed to realize that he was no longer all the way in his littlespace and backed off a bit.

“I was never mad at you. A bit shocked, and slow to react maybe, but I wasn’t mad. I knew what I might be in for, I did do some research, you know.”

“I didn’t know it would be like this,” Charlie admitted.

“Do you want to end this here? You can still stay over even if you don’t want to be Little. We can just hang out, if you want.”

“I want to go back into my littlespace, but, I’m scared. What if i have another accident or I don’t wake up in time when I'm sleep.”

“There is a solution to that,” Don hedged.

There was only one thing that he could be talking about. Charlie flushed at the idea of wearing a diaper, but at the same time, he would have the piece of mind that he would wet his pants or the furniture.

“You’re really okay with that?”

“I wouldn’t have suggested it if I wasn’t.”

“Okay,” Charlie agreed, and Don went to get the supplies, which was also his subtle way of giving Charlie a little time by himself to think.

He wasn’t sure if he liked the turn that this evening had taken, but he couldn’t help smiling, because as scary, and startling as this was, it showed him just how much Don was committed to being his caregiver.


	4. Good Night; Good Morning

When Don came back to the bathroom, he smiled. Charlie had managed to slip back into his littlespace, and he was currently giggling as he sent the ducks through the water, which made tracks in the bubbles.

“Having a good time buddy?”

“Yea, I really likes the duckies.”

“Do they have names?” Don asked out of curiosity.

“Dat one is Bee,” he said pointing at a duck that was white with painted-on sunglasses, “dis one is Day,” the duck he pointed to was a dark tannish brown one, with an eye patch, “Dis one is Ry,” that one was the standard yellow duck, except it’s wings were tipped with white, “and dat one is Meg,” that duck was white with swirls on it.

“Are they FBI?”

Charlie nodded. “Dey a special tas force. Da Duck Unit.”

“Are they on a case?”

“Mmm hmmm, dey have to find out why da water has bubbles.”

“How is the investigation going?”

“Not good. Dey need clues.”

“Well they might have to rest for the night, otherwise you’ll be a prune.”

Charlie laughed. “Kay Donny.”

Don helped Charlie stand and sponged off the lingering suds. Then he was wrapped in a big fluffy towel.

“Uh oh, I think I lost my little brother!” Don said in mock horror. “Where could he have gone?”

Charlie giggled. “Not lost!”

“Oh I thought you were a marshmallow or a pile of snow.”

“Silly Donny.”

“Well let’s get you dressed, then we can have some dinner. That sound good?”

“Yea.”

The first thing was the diaper. Don didn’t make a big deal out of it, he just, prepared the area, and taped it up securely. He had bought both pull-up style, and ones with tabs, but the tabbed ones were said to hold better, and if Charlie was having trouble sensing his own needs while in littlespace, it was better to have something that would last, rather than something that would be better for a quick removal. They could work on that later though. He had come across a lot of products during his research.

After the diaper was on, he put Charlie in a pair of sweats that were a size bigger than he wore. It did a excellent job of concealing the diaper. They both knew he had it on, and there wasn’t going to be anyone else over, but he figured it would be best if it was hidden from view.

The next item was a shirt that was slightly large on him. “This okay?”

Charlie took a few steps, getting used to the padding. “Good.”

Dinner was chicken nuggets, and french fries. Both were easy finger food, and Don gave Charlie a cup of water, and after that another cup of juice. It was nine-thirty when they finished.

Don figured ten was an acceptable bedtime give how the day had gone. A few more episode of the cartoon, and Charlie was yawning, barely able to stay awake now.

After the episode finished, he helped him up from the couch, making sure to grab Dray, and Tessa, and then tucked Charlie into bed.

Don was just about to leave the room, when he heard a quiet, “stay.”

There was no way he could refuse. He got himself ready for bed, and climbed in next to his brother.

“Night Donny,” Charlie said.

“Night buddy, sweet dreams.”

 

Charlie woke up half in littlespace, and half out. Something was bound to tip the scale, and in this case it was his bladder.

Just as it had yesterday, his body had seemed to wait until he was completely desperate to tell him that he needed to urinate. The thing was, he could make it, right now, he could leap out of this nice warm bed, and dash to the toilet. He wouldn’t even leak, he knew because when he got wrapped up in his equations he barely took the time to notice signals that his body sent, until they were urgent. It was a bad habit his dad was trying to break him of.

He squirmed, and he knew he only had a few moments to weigh his options. He could get up, make it to the bathroom, and then see if he would be able to get back into littlespace. Or he could just… let go. Isn’t that the reason Don had given him some protection?

The issue was that if he let loose in the diaper it wouldn’t be an accident. Then again wouldn’t that cement his trust in his brother as a caregiver? Wouldn’t that prove that he truly trusted Don to care for his needs?

That indecision cost him valuable time, and the diaper was suddenly a bit damper than it had been. Before he could second-guess himself, he let go. The pee rushed out with an audible hiss, and he hid his face scared that the sound would wake Donny.  That would be super embarrassing. it was one thing to use the diaper, and another for his brother to wake up to the noise of it. The padding swelled, as it absorbed the flood that was starting to seem never ending. he had the forethought to slow down a little so that the padding would have a little time to soak up the urine, and he gave a sigh when he was nearly done.

When the last drops were finally out, he put a hand down to his pants to check for leaks. He was completely dry, on the outside at least. He sighed again, and now that he was relieved, he realized how tired he was. A few more hours would be lovely.

~

When he got up Don was out of the bed, and Dray and Tessa were right next to him. He had to pee a little bit, and this time he didn’t fight the release. It wasn’t nearly as much as before, but it certainly warmed the diaper up.

“You ready for breakfast?” Donny said after poking his head into the room to see if he was awake.

“Yea,” Charlie said, before blushing. “I’m wet,” he admitted.

“Do you want me to take care of that for you?”

“Yes pwease.”

“Come with me,” Don said.

Charlie stood. The wet diaper was really noticeable since it hung heavy from his body.

Donny led him to the bathroom, as though this was something that was utterly normal, pulled down his pants, having him step out of them when they were around his feet, and took off the diaper, rolled it up and threw it away. Then he sat Charlie on the toilet.

For a moment he wondered why, until he felt another need swelling up. How Donny knew before he did was a mystery.

Charlie took care of the wiping up himself, he was regressed sure, but there were some things he could do. The sources that he had looked at had said that one of the signs of true age regression was that most regressors did not have a particular age they went to because likes, dislikes, and feelings dictated behaviors. His state of mind was certainly close to a toddler's in most things, but some of his actions were things developed in later stages.

“Don’t forget to flush,” Donny reminded him.

“Kay,” Charlie said. He tossed the used tissue into the bowl, and pulled the lever.

“Go wash your hands buddy, then we’ll get you dressed.

Charlie went over to the sink, and took a pump of soap, let out a surprised gasp. This was the foamy soap, with a grim he pumped another into his hands. He rubbed the foam around, laughing as he smooshed the foaming suds.

“I thought you would like that soap,” Donny commented, coming over and turning on the water.

Once Charlie was done washing his hands, a process with took probably three times as long as it should have, not that either of them were complaining about that, he looked at Donny.

“Do you think you need a diaper or do you want to wear something a little different?”

“I gets to choose?”

“Of course.”

Charlie paused there, thinking about it. A diaper would make sure that any accidents wouldn’t get everywhere, but he was a big boy, and he wanted to know what was the other thing was.

“What the other thing?”

Donny went to the cabinet under the sink. There was a pack of diapers, but there was another thing. It was black, and looked like a pair of underwear.

“What them is?”

“Training pants, so that when you need to go, if you don’t sense it in time, you’ll have a little while to get to the potty.”

“So I can be a big boy?”

“Yes, but this is your choice. I love you no matter what, buddy.”

“Kay, I wants dat,” he said pointing at the training pants.

Donny cleaned the area, then helped him put the training pants on, and then helped him back into his sweatpants. “Now that that’s done,” he said washing his hands in the sink, “let’s go get breakfast.”

Donny started to walk away, stopping when he saw that Charlie wasn’t following him. “What’s wrong, buddy?”

Charlie held out his hand.

Donny smiled, and grabbed the offered hand. He pulled him into the kitchen, and made two plates of food. There were eggs, and waffles. Charlie had milk in his special cup, and Donny had orange juice.

“What we do after breakfast?” Charlie asked, stuffing his face with a piece of waffle his big brother had cut for him.

Don smiled watching his brother make a mess of his face with the syrup that was on the waffle. “We’ll watch some tv, maybe a movie or you can play with your toys. That sound good?”

Charlie nodded rapidly, since his mouth was full.

“Slow down, little one, the food isn’t going anywhere.”

“Jus hungry,” Charlie said, but he did slow down a little.

After cleaning up, and filling Charlie’s cup with some water, they went into the bedroom to go get Tessa , and Dray, and then into the living room to find something to watch.

Once again Charlie sat really close to his big brother, and he knew that Donny was okay with it because he through a arm over him, holding him in place.

They ended up watching some cartoons. There was one with ponies, they watched a few episodes of that, and another with dinosaurs that were on a train, they watched two episodes of that. After that, Donny went to refill his cup with juice, and they looked for something else to watch. The last one was the one that he really liked, it was the little girl that had become a princess. It had fun songs and lots of animals.

As the fourth episode was ending, a phone rang.

“I have to see who that is, can you stay here for a minute?”

Charlie nodded.

Don reluctantly pulled away, and went into the kitchen, where he had laid his phone, to see who was calling.

Charlie stayed on the couch with Dray and Tessa, he was a good boy. Dray and Tessa wanted to play, and that distracted him for a little bit, but the more time passed, the more he began to worry that Donny hadn’t come back because he didn’t want to take care of his weird little brother anymore. How could Donny want someone as needy as him?

“Tessa, Dray, do Donny not want me?”

They both tried to convince him that he was wrong, but he wasn’t stupid. He knew they were just trying to make him feel better. People lied all the time to make others feel better, so stuffies would lie to make their kid feel good.

Breathing became a little hard, and he could feel the tears starting, but he didn’t want to give Donny another reason not to come back, by sobbing so hard that he couldn’t hear the person on the phone.

He stuck his thumb in his mouth. Sucking on it in an effort to self-sooth. It helped a little, and even as the tears rolled down his face, he was able to keep his sobbing down.

He wanted Donny.

He needed Donny.

“Donny,” he whimpered as he curled up on the couch.

He kept his voice down as he called his brother's name a few more times. He wanted to go get his brother, he wanted hugs, he needed the potty, but Donny had said to stay, so he would be a good boy, it was all he could do.


	5. Ending in a Good Place

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Don goes back, and talks are had

Don was not happy to have to take that call. Never in a million years did he think that he would be having so much fun watching colorful children shows, but he was. Most of it had to do with the fact that his little brother was so fluffy and happy, and it was far too cute watching him sing along to the theme songs of the shows as he learned them. On some songs, he was even get up and dance. Well it was more like uncoordinated flailing that landed him on the floor a time or two, which prompted the thought of some soft mats for the next time that they did this, but it was adorable, and just thinking about it would surely make him smile even on the worst of days.

The call was important though, the prosecution of a criminal that had been very elusive, was in jeopardy and the ensuing conversation made sure a very bad person went to jail for a long time. When he finally got off the phone, he was startled to find the call had lasted over twenty minutes. Don growled, he hadn’t meant to take that long. He knew that Charlie didn't like being away from him in his current mindset. He should have put another episode of the cartoon on to distract him a little, but he hadn't been thinking.

Hurrying into the living room, his guilt was increased. Charlie was still where he had left him, but he had his thumb in his mouth, and was crying. His other hand was down between his legs, and he was unable to stay still. It was clear what had him twisting and bouncing like that, and also what had caused the tears. “Hey buddy,” he said gently, trying not to startle him too much.

Charlie’s head snapped up at the sound of his voice. “Donny, you back?”

“Of course buddy, if you were that worried you could have come to get me.”

“But you said stay,” Charlie said, confused.

“We can talk about that more in a bit, but first is there something you need right now?”

Charlie seemed confused until he seemed to become aware of how much he was bouncing in place. “I has to pee,” he said.

“Come on, let’s get that taken care of.” Don offered his hand. Charlie seemed to hesitate, before taking the thumb from his mouth, and holding out the hand. Don took it, with no problem, and pulled him to the bathroom.

Charlie yanked down his clothing and sat on the toilet. Don turned around to give him a little privacy. It was a bit weird considering the fact that he had seen him naked not very long ago, but it felt right in this situation. Urine hitting water was the only sound in the room for a little while. Regular bathroom breaks were something that he needed to plan. Maybe he should have a schedule? Nothing too strict just general times for things to happen.

“Don't forget to flush, before you wash your hands.”

After the flush, he turned and watched his brother wash his hands. He knew that talk was needed when Charlie didn't play with the foam soap. After getting his hands dried, they went back to the living room and Don sat next to him.

“Buddy, I think we need to have some rules.”

“What kinda rules?” Charlie asked nervously.

“Just ones that will make things better for both of us,” Don assured him. “I will write them down, but one of them is that you can always go to the bathroom if you need to.”

“Even when you say stay?”

“Even then. Just make sure you go back to that spot when you finish. I won't know where you are, if you don't, and that would scare me.”

“Kay Donny I always go back. I no want scare you.”

“Thanks. There will be other rules, but do you have some for me?”

“I gets to have rules!?” he said in shock.

“Of course, but they have to be important. Something you always want, and I will do my best to follow them.”

“Den I jus have one right now. I no like being lone. It scary. My thoughts are mean when I lone “

Now Don felt even worst about leaving him alone when he had to take that call. He couldn't even promise that he wouldn't have to again, because his job was important, and his brother would put a stop to all of this no matter how much they both liked it if it was going to interfere with the job, and he was not going to lie to him.

“How about this? I will never leave you alone if I can help it, if I have to you will have a way to get me. I want you to remember though, that you only can use it when you really need it.”

“Kay,” he said nodding.

“We can talk more later, for right now let's go do something fun.”

“Fun? we watch more cartoon?”

“No, I got some coloring and activity books for you, I thought we could do that for a bit.” Don went and got them, and the large crayons that he had gotten, then handed the books to Charlie so that he could pick.

“Dis one!” Charlie exclaimed. The one he picked was a book that had number to number, and simple math questions to get numbers that spelled out the answer to a riddle, color by number, and word searches.

He had worried about getting this one in particular, due to the math riddles, because either it could pull Charlie out of his headspace by being too much of a reminder of work or it could just be too simple for him.

The first page was a riddle one, and Charlie had grabbed a purple crayon. The first one was simple. 1+1=_. Charlie wrote a sloppy 2 in the blank. The next. Was harder. 8+7=_. Charlie put down the crayon and tried to count it on his fingers, but it wasn't working. He looked confused, like he couldn't understand why he couldn't figure this out.

“Donny help?”

“Having a little trouble with that one buddy?”

“Yea. I knows I should know. But I no can do it.”

Don thought about how to help him. After a quick moment of his internal bulletin board reading ‘I get to help him with a math problem!!', with all the importance of a school closing for teenager, he spoke. “Would it help if I loaned you a few of my fingers?”

“Yea,” he nodded.

Don held up eight. They counted together. Then Charlie held up seven. Don pointed at the first finger and said nine.

Then the next and he waited for Charlie to say 10.

His brother stumbled at eleven, but they made it to fifteen without too much more trouble.

Charlie really seemed to like doing the puzzles and coloring in the pictures so Don made a note to get more books for him. Maybe he could even find some where you had to put stickers in the right boxes to make a picture.

An hour later, even though he really seemed to be enjoying himself, Charlie started to yawn. He had slept for a long time last night so Don felt that exhaustion was simply asserting itself.

“Hey buddy how about we have lunch, and then you can have a nap.”

“But I wanna do more puzzles,” he whined.

“We can do more later,” he promised.

“One more page?” Charlie pleaded.

Don gave in. It had absolutely nothing to do with the puppy dog eyes he was getting, and everything to do with wanting to get to see what was on the next page and avoiding the argument that would happen if he said no. That was his story and he was sticking to it. After finishing the page, they put up the book. Don was happy that Charlie didn’t ask for another page after that, because he definitely would not have given in or anything, but he just didn’t want to make his brother sad. After a quick hand washing, they went into the kitchen so that he could cook. He made a quick batch of spaghetti and sauce. It was a messy meal, but it was also one of the quickest things that he could make.

While that was cooking he and Charlie played tic-tac-toe on some junk mail. When the food was ready he served two portions.

He tucked a napkin into his brother's shirt and placed his bowl in front of him. Then he gave him thick plastic fork.

Predictably there was a mess once he was done eating. Thankfully the napkin kept the shirt clean, for the most part, and the only things he had to clean well was Charlie's face and hands.

With dinner and wash-up done, Don took him into the bedroom, changed him into a diaper, and dashed to the couch to get Tessa and Dray. Charlie made grabby hands at the stuffed toys, and Don willingly handed them over. Charlie was out the moments after the plushies were in his grasp, but he still managed a garbled thank you.

While Charlie slept, Don cleaned. He left the coloring book out though, not sure what headspace his brother would be in when he woke up from his nap. He grabbed some a can of sparkling juice from the fridge. Drinking felt wrong while his brother was in littlespace, even if he was asleep.

He channel surfed a bit before landing on an old rerun of some cliche procedural drama. He had gotten through an episode and half of another, it must have been some kind of marathon, and was halfway asleep himself when Charlie came out of the bedroom and went straight to the bathroom. The shower running was a clear indication of his state of mind. Something was a little off though. After about fifteen minutes Don realized what had caught his attention. He went into the bedroom and sure enough the duffel was still there. He grabbed the change of clothes and went to the bathroom. He knocked. “You forgot you clothes,” he called out.

The door cracked open, letting steam out of the bathroom. A slightly damp arm poked through and Don handed over the clothes.

“Thanks Don,” Charlie said sheepishly.

“No problem. Come out to the living room once you're dressed, alright?”

“...Okay.”

A few minutes later, dressed in a pair of jeans and an old t-shirt, his brother came over, and sat on the couch. He sat on the furthest cushion away from his brother, and it made Don a little sad. Little Charlie loved to be right against him, in his adult mindset, some space was anticipated, but it felt like he was on the other side of the world, and to be honest it hurt a little.“You don’t have to sit way down there,” he commented.

“I’m sorry, I just- it’s just, I don’t really know how to act right now.”

“You’re not the only one, you know?”

“I thought-”

“Charlie, I’m probably more nervous that I will screw things up than you are, but I just keep reminding myself that if I let the fear of messing this up rule me, neither of us will be happy.”

Charlie looked at him, and gave a small smile. “I suppose I need to be a bit braver myself.”

“Nah you’re brave enough, I just don’t want this part of our relationship to throw off the rest of it. We both put in a lot of effort to get where we are, and I don't want anything to ruin that.”

“You’re right. I’m just embarrassed, about, well almost everything that happened now that I’m not in littlespace anymore. When I was, I didn’t care as much, but looking at it now, I just want to disappear.”

“So am I,” Don admitted. “Not about how you were acting,” he said when his brother looked at him, “about how _I_ was acting. When you were in littlespace, I was in the caregiver equivalent. Everything just seemed natural, and thinking about it now, it feels like some kind of dream.”

Charlie stood, and sat down on the cushion next to him. “I was being silly again. I kept thinking that you didn’t get it. I think it’s only fair to warn you that it’s going to take some time for me to get to a point where the transition is easier, and won't panic every time I come out of littlespace.”

“I’m still learning too, but if you can put up with me, we can keep going.”

Charlie laughed. “Same to you," he paused for a moment. Then he added, "I love you Don.”

“Love you too little brother.”

Charlie looked away, and caught the into of the show on the screen. He looked back as though asking if Don was really watching it.

"It's not a bad show," Don defended.

"They get so much of the process wrong."

"Creative license."

"Look he's contaminating the crime scene!"

"Well yeah, but..."

They ended up playfully arguing through the entire episode, but, neither brother them seemed to mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter contains the scene that I wanted to write all along, can anyone guess what it was?

**Author's Note:**

> The saddest thing is that I don't even know if I will get to the scene that prompted this fic for me, and i had a whole other idea, that was meant to be the next part of this series, but realized that it needed to come later, after things were more established. This series is taking over my life you guys.


End file.
